True Friendship Marauder Style
by Teddylonglong
Summary: The magical world seems to turn against Harry Potter after the incident with the Dementors in Little Whinging, and Harry ends up in Azkaban. However, he will soon notice just who his real friends are, and his life will only become more interesting after this turning point. Completely AU! Partly OOC, slightly Dark/Manipulative!Harry, slight Weasley/Hermione/Dumbledore bashing.
1. Chapter 1

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

"Expectro Patronum!" Harry Potter shouted at the Dementors, wondering why two Dementors would be roaming Little Whinging on that summer evening. He realised, relieved, that he succeeded in driving away the Dementors. However, when he turned to his cousin, he noticed in horror that Dudley was lying on the ground, unmoving and seemingly unconscious.

With a combination of hope and exasperation, Harry saw Mrs. Figg come over to them. He was relieved, because he had no idea what to do about Dudley, but at the same time frustrated, as she was only a muggle and not able to comprehend what had happened.

He almost thought his heart was going to stop, when the old lady uttered, "Dementors, they're horrible creatures. I think that they got Dudley. We must fetch Dumbledore."

Before Harry could wonder about why his old babysitter knew Dumbledore, an owl approached him and handed him a letter that stated that he was expelled from Hogwarts for the performance of under-age magic.

"You take Dudley home, I'll call Dumbledore and will then come over to speak with your relatives," Mrs. Figg instructed him and hurried away, leaving it to Harry to carry his unresponsive cousin home.

HP

Unfortunately, at the sight of his son, whose soul had been sucked out of his lifeless body, Vernon Dursley had no intention of waiting for any freak to explain. Instead, he called the muggle police and grabbed Harry's wand breaking it into pieces. Mrs. Figg arrived at the same time as the police, however, no one felt inclined to listen to an old and seemingly crazy lady, and the police officers took Harry into custody.

 _'Dumbledore, he'll come and rescue me and obliviate the muggles,'_ Harry trusted, as he sat on the floor in his cell.

HP

Unfortunately, by the time Albus Dumbledore reached the Dursleys' house two hours later, as he had been on an errand when the news reached him, Arabella Figg had already returned home, and Vernon Dursley informed the headmaster that Harry had killed Dudley, handing the pieces of the unwanted freak's wand to the old wizard.

Sad and horrified at the same time, Albus returned to Hogwarts and contacted the Aurors as well as his colleagues about the matter, wondering how Harry was capable of murder.

"Maybe it would be wise casting the Priori Incantatem spell at Potter's wand to confirm that he really killed his cousin," Snape advised him, however, Albus ignored his young colleague's opinion, knowing that Dudley Dursley was in fact dead.

HP

Harry looked up, startled, when he felt a pop right beside himself and saw the old wizard in the sparse light of his cell.

"Professor," he blurted out in relief.

However, the old wizard barely acknowledged his presence and merely said something about being disappointed, before he apparated both of them away. Soon, Harry found himself in front of another cell, and only the presence of Tonks, Shacklebolt and a hand full of other Aurors alerted him to the matter that it had to be a ministry holding cell.

"It's not my fault," he wanted to shout to let them know, but a small voice from the back of his mind told him, _'It was your fault. The Dementors were there because of you. They knew that you were responsible for Cedric's death, and now it's your fault that Dudley's dead, too.'_

"You'll have a trial during the next few days," someone told him, before everyone left, making sure that his cell was properly locked.

HP

Harry was devastated. During the following days, Aurors came to bring something to eat for him several times a day, however, no one spoke to him, and none of his professors or friends came to see him.

 _'They know me,'_ Harry thought in desperation. _'They know that I wouldn't kill anyone, even if it was my fault that the Dementors were there.'_

He was not even questioned about the event. _'They can question me under Veritaserum, and then they'll know that I'm innocent,'_ Harry thought, feeling completely left alone.

HP

One morning, two Aurors woke him up and instructed him to follow him. "You're going to have your trial in ten minutes," he told him, causing Harry to stare at the men in shock. However, they already grabbed both of his arms and held them in a firm grip to lead him towards the courtroom.

Five minutes later, Harry found himself sitting in the most uncomfortable chair that he had ever experienced, with his whole body restricted by heavy chains. _'As if I would run away,_ ' he thought with a combination of confusion and annoyance, as he skimmed the room for any known, friendly faces.

 _'Sirius won't be able to come,'_ he realised, _'as he's still a fugitive. But I hope that Dumbledore will see reason and that Ron and Hermione will be allowed to come.'_

HP

Before he could spot anyone he knew in the audience that was gathered on his right side, while what he assumed to be the Wizengamot was sitting on the left, a lady in pink robes stood from her seat next to Minister Fudge in front of the Wizengamot.

The minister whispered something into her ear, before he rose himself and addressed the audience. "Unfortunately, Madam Bones is ill today, and therefore, my under secretary Dolores Umbridge will lead this trial. Please begin, Dolores."

"Harry Potter," the woman in the pink robes addressed him, "you're accused with the murder of Cedric Diggory and your cousin Dudley Dursley. How do you plead?"

"Innocent in both cases," Harry replied in a firm voice.

The woman, who had to be the most annoying person that Harry had ever met, even including the Dursleys, let out a small chuckle of disbelief, before she told the audience that he, Harry Potter, had been alone on the street with Dudley Dursley, before he carried his dead cousin home. Only an old muggle lady was on the street and witnessed how Harry used his wand in a complete muggle area, while at the same time, information of under-age magic reached the Ministry of Magic leading to Harry's expulsion from Hogwarts. When Cedric Diggory died, apparently no one else had been with Harry and Cedric.

"Everyone who can comment on the matter is invited to do so, before the Wizengamot will decide on the verdict," Umbridge finished her explanation, seemingly contented with something.

From the corner of his eyes, Harry saw Mrs. Weasley, Ron and Hermione come forward. _'Thank Merlin, they'd never believe that I did such a thing and they know about Voldemort's return,_ ' he thought in relief.

Mrs. Weasley pushed Ron forward.

"The first witness, Ronald Weasley," Umbridge announced.

Ron seemed uncertain, when he slowly began to speak. "Harry was always in the spotlight. He is the boy who lived, he was selected to participate in the Triwizard Tournament and so on. He always had the fame and the attention of everyone. During these holidays, Dumbledore forbade us to make any contact with him, so I suppose that he missed the attention which he usually received from everyone and thus murdered his cousin in a faint attempt to get back into the spotlight."

 _'What?'_ Harry thought, horrified, staring at what was supposed to be his best friend in shock.

"Hermione Granger," Umbridge called the next witness.

"It is like Ronald described already," Hermione spoke up in a firm voice. "At the beginning of our first Hogwarts year, Professor Dumbledore asked Ronald and me to friend Harry and remain friends with him during our time at Hogwarts, which is why we helped him through everything during our four Hogwarts years. However, since Professor Dumbledore prevented us from contacting Harry let alone see him during these holidays, we were unable to influence him in any way. I know that the Dursleys did not treat him well, but still…" She slowly trailed off.

 _'They were only my friends because Dumbledore told them?'_ Harry thought in disbelief and shock.

Next, Mrs. Weasley was called, and she told the Wizengamot that he had always been an attention seeking brat that got everything that he wanted like being allowed to become a member of the Quidditch house team as a first year.

 _'If they'll ever find out that I'm innocent, I'm done with the Weasleys,'_ Harry resolved, just when Dumbledore entered the courtroom with Remus and Mrs. Figg in tow.

"We did not know that the time of the trial has been changed until a few minutes ago," Dumbledore excused himself and introduced Remus and Mrs. Figg as witnesses, before he took his seat on the Wizengamot behind Minister Fudge.

"There were Dementors," Mrs. Figg explained. "Two Dementors, and Harry chased them away with a bright spell, when they attacked his cousin."

"You are a muggle?" Umbridge queried, disdain clear in her voice.

"I'm a Squib," Mrs. Figg corrected her.

Once again, Umbridge let out her most annoying chuckle of disbelief, before she enquired, "What did the Dementors look like? Did they say why they were there?"

"They were all black, and the air around us became very cold," Mrs. Figg slowly described the effects. "They did not say anything."

 _'If she does this chuckle again, I kill her,'_ Harry thought, knowing from Umbridge's reaction that Mrs. Figg's attempt to prove his innocence would not have any effect whatsoever.

"Remus Lupin," Umbridge called the last witness.

"I've known Harry as a very private person, however, like his mother was the kindest witch I ever met, Harry is an extremely kind wizard. He'd never willingly harm anyone," Remus said in a firm voice. "I am sure that he did not commit any of the murders he is accused of."

"Enough," Umbridge said in a sweet voice. "You're a werewolf, Mr. Lupin, aren't you?"

"Yes," Remus replied, before he returned to his seat, shaking his head in apparent annoyance.

HP

 _'At least Remus believes in me,'_ Harry thought, feeling slightly consoled over the betrayal of what he had thought of as his best friends. _'It won't help me though.'_

He was not surprised at all, when the verdict was announced ten minutes later: A life time stay in Azkaban.

 _tbc..._

 _Please don't kill me. Harry won't stay in Azkaban for long. A huge thanks to my Facebook friends for their enormous support for this story and thanks to Faye for the title!_


	2. Chapter 2

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

Fred Weasley opened his eyes and glanced at the time display on the wall – only to sit up straight in his bed in shock.

"George, George," he hissed, shaking his twin brother awake. "Isn't today Harry's trial?"

"Yeah," came the sleepy response. "What time isit?"

"It's ten past twelve," Fred informed him, sounding extremely upset. "That trial was first thing in the morning."

"Mum!" George moaned. "She must have slipped us a sleeping draught to prevent us…"

"… from attending the trial and defending Harry," his brother agreed, equally horrified.

HP

Ten minutes later, the twins stormed the kitchen, where Sirius, Remus, Mrs. Weasley, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were leading a heated conversation.

"Mum…"

"… did you slip as a potion?" the twins enquired.

"Yes, a sleeping potion just like she did to me, so that we couldn't go to the trial," Ginny informed them, tears running down her cheeks, as she continued, "Harry has been sent to Azkaban."

"They completely ignored what I said, because I'm a werewolf," Remus spoke up, seemingly shocked.

"Mum," the twins spoke up, simultaneously. "Good bye."

Turning to Sirius and Remus, Fred added, "Please contact us as soon as possible. We need to make a plan to rectify the situation…"

"… We're not going to discuss this here with our disgusting family members and their girlfriend around," George completed his sentence, handing Sirius a small parchment with the name of their fireplace on it.

HP

In the evening of the same day, Sirius, Remus and Tonks met with the twins in the small apartment on the top floor of the building, where the twins were just building up their shop.

"Umbridge led the trial, stating that Amelia Bones was ill today, and since the only defences Harry had were a werewolf and a Squib, Harry had no one to speak for him," Remus informed the others.

"Did he not even have a solicitor?" Sirius enquired in apparent anger.

"No and neither did they question him under Veritaserum," Remus confirmed. "I believe that Umbridge and Fudge just wanted to get Harry out of the way, probably because he told the magical world about Voldemort's return, which Fudge tries to deny."

"We need to find out who sent the Dementors to Little Whinging," Sirius said in determination.

"And also why Amelia was ill today," Tonks added. "She seemed completely normal yesterday evening. Somehow, I don't believe in coincidences."

"I wonder why Dumbledore didn't believe that there were Dementors though," Fred spoke up, pensively.

"Does he also want to get rid of Harry?" George asked, incredulously.

"We need to question them all under Veritaserum," Sirius growled. "As if Harry would kill anyone."

"Umbridge is going to be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts from September onwards," Tonks informed them. "Perhaps you can somehow question her at the school?"

The twins exchanged a mischievous look before uttering a simultaneous reply that would have made everyone pity Umbridge if she hadn't been such a bitch.

"We're not going back to Hogwarts…"

"… we're going to get Harry out of Azkaban…"

"… and either go into hiding together or leave the country."

"Fred, George, may I borrow your fireplace for a moment, please?" Tonks suddenly asked in apparent determination.

Seeing the twins nod their agreement, Tonks stepped into the fireplace to visit her boss, Amelia Bones.

HP

"Tonks, what happened?" Amelia asked in clear surprise.

"Boss, I'm sorry for disturbing you, but I wanted to ask you what happened? I heard you were ill?"

Amelia, still white-faced, nodded. "I don't know why, but I spent the whole night and half the morning vomiting. It's all right now though."

"Do you know that Harry Potter's trial was this morning?" Tonks enquired in a stern voice, causing Amelia to gasp.

"Oh no, was that really today?" she asked in apparent confusion.

 _'_ _Something is really wrong here,'_ Tonks thought and decided to tell Amelia the truth. "I suspect that Umbridge did something to you, not only to make you ill, but also to have you forget about the trial," she said, frankly. "Would you mind if I asked my mother to check on you if she can find any indications? Maybe it's already too late, and maybe it's nothing, but…"

"Tonks, I fully agree," Amelia replied in determination.

Two minutes later, Andromeda stepped through the fireplace and, after hearing the full story, waved her wand over Amelia multiple times. The diagnosis was shocking. Not only had Amelia been poisoned, probably with the help of a potion, but she had also clearly been obliviated about Harry Potter's trial.

Andromeda issued a certificate with the result of her checks in case Amelia would need a confirmation of her diagnosis for a possible trial against one or more of her co-workers.

"Could it have been Umbridge?" Tonks asked, recalling what she had heard about the trial.

"That's very well possible," Amelia replied, explaining that she and Umbridge had tea together with Minister Fudge the previous afternoon.

"Would the poison take that long to work?" Tonks enquired, causing Andromeda to nod in confirmation.

"Yes, about eight hours seems plausible," Andromeda informed her, before she took her leave.

Tonks invited Amelia over to the twins' place, and after hearing who else was present for their meeting, Amelia hesitantly agreed, not really wanting to speak with anyone, however, grateful to be able to have some reliable persons help her clear up the matter.

By the time their meeting ended, Amelia promised to apply for a trial for Sirius Black that should clear his name simply by questioning him under Veritaserum, the twins and Sirius should find a way to make Umbridge tell the truth even without Veritaserum if that was at all possible, and Remus had the instruction to speak with Mrs. Figg and find out why Dumbledore did not even question what Harry had done.

"As soon as we have all needed information, I'm going to have another trial for Harry, a proper one," Amelia promised in determination.

HP

Trying to ignore the Dementors as far as possible, Harry tried to focus on making a plan. _'I've always been capable of wish magic,'_ he thought. _'Maybe this will help me against the Dementors.'_ He concentrated on his magic and wished his magic to keep him safe from the effects of the Dementors. _'I hope it'll work,'_ he mused, letting the trial pass revue in front of his eyes once again. _'I'll get back to Granger and the Weasleys some time,'_ he resolved.

Recalling how Sirius had escaped from Azkaban two years ago, he made a decision. _'I'm going to try to become a phoenix Animagus. As such, I'll be able to easily escape.'_ With that decision in mind, he lay down and drifted off to sleep, his magic efficiently blocking the Dementors.

HP

It was almost two weeks later, two weeks, during which Harry had eagerly practised the Animagus transformation as well as wandless magic, that fireworks were shot up near Azkaban. While the guards were frantically conferring how it was possible to shoot up fireworks over the sea right next to the building, on the side on which the cells were situated at that, the prisoners stared out of their small windows in clear amazement.

 _'_ _It's beautiful,'_ Harry realised. _'How strange. Who would do fireworks over Azkaban?'_ he wondered, his thoughts automatically travelling to the Weasley twins. _'No, they wouldn't do such a thing for me,'_ he then reminded himself, recalling how the Weasleys had behaved during his trial. He observed how various kinds of animals were displayed in the sky, before all of a sudden, letters appeared out of the fireworks. In front of Harry's and the other prisoners' eyes, the letters formed to words.

 _'_ _Harry, don't give up!'_

 _'_ _We're working on it!'_

 _'_ _What?'_ Harry's eyes widened with a combination of surprise and happiness. _'The twins, maybe together with Sirius and Remus. They're going to help me,'_ he thought, tears welling in his eyes at the comforting idea to still have good friends who were trying to get him out of Azkaban.

HP

Feeling to a certain extent relieved and happy after receiving the twins' message, Harry intensified his practice of the Animagus transformation, and another week later, he managed to transform his complete body into a blue water phoenix with emerald back feathers.

 _'_ _I did it,'_ he thought in amazement. _'Now, nothing is going to keep me here. The only problem is that I have to practise walking on these bird feet and flashing.'_ He eagerly spent the following days exploring his new form, and after a few hours of landing on his back each time he tried to walk, he succeeded in making small steps forwards and backwards. _'Now I still need to flash,'_ he thought, feeling extremely impatient. To his relief, the Dementors completely ignored him, when he was in his phoenix form. Even if he had found out how to suppress their effects, he was still glad to not be exposed to their close presence and simply remained in his Animagus form.

Flashing was more difficult than walking or flying, as it afforded a lot of magic, especially when he consecutively made multiple attempts to flash from one side of his cell to the other. However, two days later, he was able to perfectly flash himself, even if a splash of water accompanied his departure and landing. _'Never mind,_ ' he thought. _'I should be able to leave here now.'_ For a moment, he pondered if he should get some sleep before flashing over a longer distance, however, he dismissed the idea and readied himself to do the first real stunt in his life, escaping from Azkaban.

During the week that had passed since the fireworks display, he had already decided where he was going to flash. Since Sirius and Remus, even if they were probably on his side too, were living in Sirius' old house that was the headquarters of Dumbledore's order, Sirius' place was out of question. It was too dangerous for him to flash there, especially since Dumbledore was around from time to time and might recognise him even if he was in his new Animagus form. Apart from that, he didn't really wish to meet Hermione or Ron any time again, let alone Mrs. Weasley.

 _'_ _Maybe going to where the twins are might be safer,'_ he thought. He did not know but assumed that Hogwarts had already begun again and that the twins would be at the castle. _'Well, there's also the danger of meeting Dumbledore, but if it's not at meal times, he probably won't be near the twins, and Ron and Hermione I can just ignore,'_ he reasoned and decided to go to see the twins.

From the light that was coming through the small window, he realised that it had to be around nine o'clock in the evening, which he deemed a good time to travel.

Concentrating on his magic and the task ahead, he thought of the twins and wished to land on Fred Weasley's left shoulder, before he flashed away in a splash of water.

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the first chapter!_


	3. Chapter 3

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

Fred and George Weasley were just sitting in their small living room together with Sirius, Remus, Tonks and Amelia, discussing the twins' soon-to-be-played prank on Dolores Umbridge, when all of a sudden, a splash of water covered all of them, as a dark blue bird perched itself on Fred's shoulder.

Letting out a squeak of surprise, Fred looked to the left, eyeing the relatively large bird in disbelief.

"Hello there," he said. "Who are you, and to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Ah Gred," George groaned. "It's obvious who it is. Look at his eyes."

#Don't say my name in front of this audience here# Harry demanded in a quick series of trills.

"Oh he speaks…"

"… and no, we won't," the twins replied in apparent delight.

#I've bonded with the two of you, so you should be able to think to me,# Harry informed his friends.

'I think we should tell the others who you are…'

'… They're all here to plot with us how to get you out of Azkaban,' the twins telepathically informed Harry.

#All right then. If Amelia or Tonks try to catch me, I'll just flash away,# Harry agreed.

"Fred, George, is that Harry?" Sirius suddenly spoke up, causing Harry to nod in excitement.

"Harry?" Amelia and Tonks blurted out in simultaneous shock.

"Excuse me, ladies…"

"… Is it safe for him to transform back…"

"… in front of the two of you?" the twins enquired, making Amelia and Tonks nod their heads.

"If you don't tell anyone that we were together with him, then it's all right," Amelia finally said.

"Maybe you should lock your fireplace first," Remus threw in. "Before your mother comes to once again try to convince you to return to Hogwarts."

"All right," the twins agreed, and with a wave of George's hand, the fireplace was locked for any visitors from outside.

HP

Harry shyly transformed back into his human form, smiling, when Tonks and Amelia both hurried over to pull him into gentle hugs. Sirius and Remus followed.

"Thanks so much for these fireworks," Harry spoke up, feeling very relieved at the kind gestures. "They really helped me achieve the Transformation."

"You just flashed out of Azkaban in your phoenix form?" Amelia enquired in clear disbelief.

"Yes Madam, I knew from Sirius that he escaped Azkaban in his Animagus form, and I thought a phoenix would be even more comfortable to escape," Harry admitted, smirking.

Amelia cast Sirius a long look, before she turned back to Harry and informed him that Sirius had received a trial and was cleared from all charges.

"Really?" Harry blurted out in delight. "Congratulations, Sirius."

"Thanks Harry," Sirius replied, grinning.

"Messrs. Weasley," Amelia spoke again, letting out a small sigh. "Harry's escape from Azkaban will be known by tomorrow morning; therefore, I expect to be called into Minister Fudge's office together with Miss Umbridge." She remained pensive for an instant before continuing, "Can you do all three places? I think now would be a good timing to involve Dobby."

"Yes…"

"… of course," the twins agreed in apparent understanding and immediately called Dobby.

 _'_ _Won't he give me out?'_ Harry wondered and anxiously transformed back into his phoenix form. _'Oh well, he probably won't, but better to be safe than sorry.'_

The twins quickly instructed Dobby that he had to install their application, about which they had informed him a couple of days ago, in three offices, namely those of the Minister of Magic, his under secretary and Madam Bones.

"Dobby wills do that right away, Masters Fred and George," Dobby confirmed in clear excitement, before he accepted the material from the twins and popped away, a determined expression on his face.

"Sorry, what exactly is he supposed to do?" Harry asked in confusion, as he transformed back into his human form.

"These devices are charmed…"

"… to work like Veritaserum…"

"… for everyone in a room," the twins explained, before Fred handed Madam Bones a small phial.

"Please don't forget to take the antidote against Veritaserum…"

"… so that you won't be affected by the charm."

"The antidote works for the charm?" Amelia queried, surprise and amazement visible in her expression.

"Yes," the twins confirmed, grinning.

HP

While Amelia was waiting for her conversation with Minister Fudge and Dolores Umbridge to occur, Harry, Sirius, Remus and the twins discussed their future plans.

"We're going to leave the Weasley family…"

"… and change our names," the twins were the first to speak up.

"Would it be all right…"

"… if we took on the name Marauder?"

"Fred and George Marauder?" Remus asked, incredulously, while Sirius burst out laughing.

"I'm going to die," Harry informed everyone, causing his friends to stare at him in disbelief. Harry chuckled and used his wish magic to change his features in a way that he looked slightly similar to the twins. "May I introduce myself? I'm Harold Mauder," he explained, smirking.

"Oh right.."

"… our triplet…"

"… How could we forget about you?" the twins commented, grinning broadly.

"And Mauder is better by the way," they added, simultaneously.

"All right then, first of all, I need to make my new identity," Harry mused aloud, "then I'm going to set up my final will and send it to Gringotts. Sirius and Remus, why don't you find a place for the twins and I, if not for all of us, to live and open their shop anew? Provided that you want to move the shop to prevent your mother from coming after you on a daily basis?" Glancing at the twins, he quirked an eyebrow.

"Of course," Fred and George agreed, simultaneously.

"Harry, I believe that you can tell Buckbean the truth," Sirius spoke up, thoughtfully. "He's the Potters' account manager at Gringotts, and he's absolutely loyal. I've known him for many years. You can still make a will just for show and give some things away, but other than that, make him just change the name of your account."

"I'll speak with him," Harry promised and transformed into his phoenix form to flash straight to Gringotts, hoping that he would be in his Harold Mauder form with red hair and brown eyes once he changed back.

HP

It was already almost lunchtime, when Amelia Bones was called into the minister's office together with Dolores Umbridge. _'Did the news finally reached him?'_ she thought in amusement.

"Harry Potter has broken out of Azkaban," Fudge informed them, causing Umbridge to jump from her chair and let out a shriek of absolute annoyance.

"Well, I'm still researching some points about his trial," Amelia commented, dryly. "Maybe he's innocent after all, just like Mr. Black was." Turning to Fudge, she enquired, "Minister, do you have an idea how two Dementors could get to Little Whinging?"

"I've no idea," Fudge replied in confusion. "Do you believe that there really were Dementors?"

"Yes, I think so," Amelia replied, matter-of-factly. Why else would Mrs. Figg have been able to describe them so well? Dolores, do you have an idea?"

"Of course I have, because I sent them there," Umbridge responded, before her face took on a terrified expression.

"Ah, how interesting," Amelia commented. "And why might that be?"

"To kiss Harry Potter, but unfortunately, he was able to cast the Patronus Charm," Umbridge replied, before enquiring, "Have you somehow slipped me Veritaserum?"

"Of course not," Amelia said, feigning confusion.

"Dolores, how dare you?" Fudge suddenly spoke up. "I know I wanted Potter in Azkaban but not killed let alone kissed by a Dementor."

"Well, I suggest that we extend the new trial for Harry Potter to Miss Umbridge," Amelia said in a firm voice, causing the minister to nod.

"Yes Amelia, you have my consent," he confirmed and was just going to end the meeting, when Amelia's personal house-elf arrived with a letter for Amelia.

Amelia's eyes widened upon reading the letter. It was an invitation from Gringotts to the reading of Harry Potter's will after Harry Potter had apparently committed suicide earlier the same day. "Harry Potter has killed himself," she informed her colleagues. "Nevertheless, I'm going to clear his name," she added, before leaving the room in determination.

Back in her own office, she apparated straight into the twins' apartment to confirm that the letter had merely been a hoax and was informed about Harry's new identity.

"Thank Merlin," she said in relief and promised to have a trial for Umbridge in order to posthumously clear Harry's name during the next few days.

HP

The trial for Dolores Umbridge took place on the day before the event of the reading of Harry's will at Gringotts. Mrs. Figg, Remus and Sirius attended as witnesses, and Sirius presented a memory from Harry about his fight against the two Dementors, which spoke for itself. Dolores Umbridge was sentenced to a life-long stay in Azkaban for attempted murder of a student and murder of his muggle cousin.

HP

"Do I really need to attend the reading of my own will?" Harry asked, as he readied himself to accompany the twins, Sirius and Remus to Gringotts in his Harold Mauder form.

"Do you really want to miss all the fun…"

"… that we're going to have…"

"… when our former brother and his girlfriend learn…"

"… what you left them?" the twins enquired, giving Harry mischievous looks.

"Oh well…" Harry replied, sighing.

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	4. Chapter 4

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

Harry in his Harold Mauder form hesitantly entered the office at Gringotts together with Sirius, pretending that he did not know anyone but him. On the one hand, he'd have preferred remaining in the twins' apartment, however, on the other hand, he wanted to see the expressions of his former supposed-to-be friends upon hearing his will.

Noticing that he received curious looks from many of the people gathered, he returned blank looks and only greeted people when they addressed him.

To his relief, everyone gathered on time, and Buckbean punctually began with the reading. "This is Harry Potter's last will, which he sent me three days ago," Buckbean announced and began to read.

 _"Hi my friends and other members of the magical world.  
First of all, I am sorry to bother you by taking my life, which I did solely because of the betrayal displayed by my so-called friends. Now, since you all know that my parents left me a fortune, I am going to distribute it in the following way._

 _To Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Amelia Bones and the Weasley twins I leave one million Galleons each._

 _The rest of the money as well as all the items and buildings I leave to Harold Mauder, who has been my secret friend over years. You'll know what to do with everything._

 _Then, I leave the remains of the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets at Hogwarts to Severus Snape as a thank you for whatever he has done for me. According to my account manager at Gringotts, the ingredients will be worth millions of Galleons, and the goblins are ready to harvest the basilisk for you for a small fee. Sirius is in the possession of a video of how to open the chamber, which he will give you upon request._

 _To Luna Lovegood I leave my broom, and to Neville Longbottom my owl, Hedwig. Thanks to both of you for being a good friend._

 _To Albus Dumbledore I leave a photo frame of myself being stuck in my cell in Azkaban. It has a sticking charm on it and is already fixed to your office wall. I further leave my dragon statue from the first task of the Triwizard Tournament to Ronald Weasley, so that he can try convincing everyone that he fought the dragon himself, and a house-elf's head in a snow globe to Hermione Granger._

 _To Ginny Weasley I leave the dissolution of the betrothal contract, which Albus Dumbledore made with your parents without my knowledge let alone permission. Finally, to Molly Weasley I leave the request to pay back every Galleon, which Albus Dumbledore has stolen from my account and given to you for having your children friend me without my permission._

 _Last, I give my votes for the Wizengamot, which are three, the votes of the houses Potter, Gryffindor-Ravenclaw and Slytherin-Hufflepuff, along with the ownership of Hogwarts to my godfather's and my parents' old friend Jamie Nottingham. I trust you to know me and especially them well enough to be able to decide in the interest of my families._

 _To all my true friends, I thank you for your friendship, and I wish you a very happy life. Harry James Potter."_

Realising that Sirius, Remus, Amelia, Tonks and the twins were crying over his feigned passing, Harry followed their example and observed the interactions and reactions of everyone else. From the corner of his eyes, he could see that Mrs. Weasley was wiping a tear from her eyes. _'Probably feigning being sad,'_ he thought, grimly. Ron seemed fairly unimpressed, while Hermione was white-faced and clearly upset. Harry inwardly grinned. _'They surely expected to get better things,'_ he thought in silent amusement.

Finally, he readied himself to use the time turner, which he had stolen from the Department of Magical Mysteries by flashing himself into the ministry on the previous day, and returned to the beginning of the reading, which he attended in form of Jamie Nottingham. Jamie was of about the same age as Sirius and Remus and had short blond hair and blue eyes.

Finally, people began to leave the room, after Buckbean reassured them that all money would be automatically transferred to their vaults and that all items would be sent out by owl post first thing the following morning.

Inwardly sighing in relief, Harry followed Sirius and Remus out of the room, noticing from the corner of his eyes how Ginny Weasley was clinging to her mother, crying her eyes out, while Hermione and Ron looked outright upset and Molly Weasley murderous.

 _'That went well,'_ he thought, contentedly, as he left the building alone and turned around the next corner to change into his phoenix form and return to the twins' apartment.

HP

A mere hour later, the fireplace in the twins' apartment flared and announced that Molly Weasley wished to step through.

"No way," the twins replied and refused to open the fireplace, while Harry hurriedly transformed into his phoenix form.

"Please let me through. I want to talk to you," Molly insisted.

"No," Fred and George countered.

"You received so much money from Harry. Can you perhaps pay the school fees for Ginny and Ron?" Molly enquired.

"Seeing how you helped Harry when he was in need…"

"… we won't help you either."

"… This is all your fault…"

"… and we don't belong to your family anymore anyway.

With that, the twins ended the conversation.

"I'm sorry," Harry replied in a small voice once he was back in his human form.

"Nothing to be sorry about…"

"… It's their fault and not yours," Fred and George reassured him.

HP

All of a sudden, a well-known voice penetrated Harry's mind. 'Thank you for leaving me the basilisk, Mr. Potter. I greatly appreciate it.'

'You're welcome, Professor,' Harry replied, inwardly grinning. _'I knew it. It was Snape. He was the one who gave me the partner ring as a baby and informed me about the magical world when the Dursleys didn't,'_ he thought, feeling very much relieved that he had acknowledged the older wizard in his will, although he had never been really sure that it had been the professor who had always looked out for him through the connection provided by the ring.

HP

"Harry is not dead," Albus Dumbledore informed his colleagues, as he gathered the heads of the houses in his office, closely monitoring the devices on his shelf. "The blood wards around the Dursleys' home have completely failed, however, the device, which is monitoring his life, is working fully normal. I have no idea why he feigned his own death."

"Isn't that clear?" Minerva McGonagall spoke up in an upset voice. "After all you put that boy through it's no wonder, especially after what his so-called friends did to him during the trial that was conducted by that bitch Umbridge and the puppet of a minister."

"I also wonder why he left so much to Severus in spite of the fact how Severus acted towards him," Albus said, pensively, his eyes lingering on the photo of Harry in Azkaban that was indeed attached to the wall opposite of his desk with a permanent sticking charm that the house-elves had not been able to counter yet.

"Severus saved Harry's life multiple times," Minerva replied, crisply. "Frankly speaking, Albus… I'm looking forward to what Lily and James are going to do to you once you meet them again in the future."

Severus merely smirked, knowing that the boy had never told anyone about their connection. _'It'll remain that way,'_ he thought in amusement. _'He certainly deserved better than what his friends along with the headmaster did to him. If there's anything I can do to help the boy, I will,'_ he promised to himself what he had already promised Lily fifteen years ago.

HP

With Buckbean's help, Remus and Sirius found a house at Hogsmeade that offered much space on the first floor for a large shop and was equipped with one big apartment on the second floor as well as three smaller apartments under the roof.

"We could even split the ground floor into two large shops if you have another idea for a second business or even use the second floor," Remus said, questioningly. "For one shop, it just seems too big."

"Yeah, the third floor alone is large enough for all of us to live in, even if Harry marries and has children," Sirius added, grinning.

"And us?" the twins enquired, feigning to be hurt.

"Well, if each of you had seven children, we'd need the second floor to remain an apartment," Remus said, smirking.

"Maybe we can just expand the twins' business in the direction of potions as well as other pranks if we're five people working on it," Harry spoke up, pensively.

After a longer discussion that included Tonks and Amelia, who came both over in the evening, it was decided to name the new shop _'Marauders' Magical Mysteries'._ They also decided to live all together in the large apartment, which consisted of a large kitchen, a bathroom, a living room as well as ten bedrooms of various sizes, and leave the top floor as storage and guest rooms.

HP

Since the twins wanted to leave their old apartment and shop, which they fortunately had not even opened yet, as soon as possible, Harry went to Hogsmeade together with Sirius and Remus and bought the house that his godfathers had found for them on the following day, and Harry and the twins moved in right away.

Not wanting anyone to know what they were doing, Sirius and Remus did not move out of Grimmauld Place, which was still frequented by the members of the Order of the Phoenix, but merely spent the days at Hogsmeade preparing everything for the shop.

Like before, Amelia and Tonks often visited to spend the evenings with Sirius, Remus and the three young wizards, and one day, Amelia told Harry in a stern voice, "Harry, I know that you all intend to open the shop as soon as possible, and I agree that it's a wonderful idea for something that's really missing in the magical world, but…" She hesitated for a moment before continuing, "… I believe that it's important that you at least take your OWLs. Sirius and Remus can teach you, and Tonks and I are also willing to give you lessons in various subjects, but you should apply with the ministry to take your OWLs there. They take place twice a year, shortly before Christmas and early in summer."

"Harry, I fully agree with Amelia," Sirius spoke up. "After taking your OWLs, the three of you should even consider taking the NEWTs, at least in certain subjects."

"Yeah, I suppose we need it at least in Potions," Harry agreed, pensively.

HP

During the two months leading up to Christmas, the twins, Sirius and Remus busied themselves preparing their shop, while Sirius taught Harry Transfiguration and Charms and Remus instructed him in Potions, using the potions lab that they had installed next to the storage room on the third floor. In the evenings, Amelia and Tonks each spent an hour teaching Harry Defence Against the Dark Arts and Herbology and were both very happy with Harry's progress.

Originally, Harry had intended to take his OWLs in the summer, at the same time when he would take them if he was still attending Hogwarts, however, after observing his training with his respective teachers one Sunday, Amelia convinced him to take the tests before Christmas.

Harry hesitantly agreed, knowing that Amelia would not suggest such a thing if she was not absolutely convinced of his capabilities. During the week before Christmas, he took the Floo to the Ministry of Magic every morning, taking the theoretical exams in the mornings and the practical tests in the afternoons. To his relief, everything went well, and in the morning of Christmas Eve, a ministry owl brought the results.

"I got an O in Transfiguration, Potions and Defence, and an E in everything else," Harry informed his family, when Sirius and Remus arrived through the fireplace.

"That's great, congratulations, Harry," Remus was the first to react, smiling broadly.

"Well done, Harry. Now then let's go on and set up a Christmas tree," Sirius replied, grinning.

"Here?" Harry asked in surprise.

"Where else?" Sirius countered. "We've told the Weasleys that we're going to open a shop in Hogsmeade from January onwards and are therefore moving here, and we've invited Amelia and Tonks to spend Christmas here with us."

"I hope that's all right with you all?" Remus asked, tentatively glancing from Harry to the twins.

"Of course," Harry and the twins confirmed at the same time.

"Amelia is going to bring her niece, Susan," Sirius added. "I suppose you know her."

"Yes," Harry replied, his thoughts going haywire. _'What am I going to do?'_ he frantically thought. _'If she doesn't know that I'm Harry, I have to be really careful what I say, but is she trustworthy enough to know the truth? I shouldn't tell anyone.'_

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	5. Chapter 5

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

"I need to go and buy a Christmas present for Susan," Harry announced and left the house, intending to buy some time for himself to ponder what to do about Susan. In fact, he did not know her very well. He had only once worked together with her for a Herbology project, but they had not spoken about much but their project. _'Well, at least she seems to be nice,'_ he thought, as he lowered himself onto a bench on the nearby playground, a couple of paths away from the main street. He pondered the matter for a little while and finally resolved to ask Amelia for her advice. At the same time, he decided to not buy a present for Susan but to give her a ten Galleon voucher for the Marauders' Magical Mysteries. _'I hope she'll like it,'_ he thought, as he slowly made his way back home, feeling very happy with his new and first real home.

HP

When Amelia and Susan arrived in the early afternoon, Harry was introduced as Harold Mauder, however, when he took Amelia aside and asked if she thought that he could reveal his identity to Susan, her aunt gave him a comforting nod.

"Harry, I'm certain that Susan will keep your secret, but you can as well ask her to swear you a witch's oath," Amelia said, gently. "When she heard about your trial and later about your death, she was devastated. I'm sure that she'll be very happy if she gets to know the truth."

"Thank you Amelia," Harry replied, gratefully. "I'll tell Susan everything then." He hesitantly followed the older witch back into the living room, where everyone was performing last-minute changes to the Christmas tree.

"Susan, would you mind swearing a witch's oath to not reveal to anyone what I'm going to tell you now?" Harry asked, hesitantly, slowly looking up to view her reaction.

Susan's expression turned to an awkward one, before she glanced at her aunt, who smiled and nodded in return, and finally agreed.

Five minutes later, Harry should learn how right Amelia had been. Hearing the truth, Susan first stared at him in clear disbelief, before she jumped up from her seat to pull him into a bear's hug.

HP

Harry had to admit to himself that he liked Susan. She was fairly shy and quiet, but she could listen well and could be outright funny at times. Moreover, she had the most beautiful smile. _'I wonder why I never noticed how pretty she is,'_ he thought one day when everyone was sitting in the kitchen together for dinner. _'Well, I knew from Herbology that she was nice, but she's more than that, she's just amazing.'_

Somehow, Harry felt sad when Susan had to return to Hogwarts at the beginning of January.

"Auntie," Susan addressed her aunt on the last day of the holidays. "Do I really have to return home to board the Hogwarts Express? Can't I just walk to the station here tomorrow and mix in with everyone?"

 _'Oh please say yes,'_ Harry thought, looking at Amelia in expectation.

"Very well," Amelia agreed. "You'll just have to be careful to be at the station on time when the train arrives."

"I'll see to it," Harry promised, causing Susan to smile at him.

"Just be careful to not call me Harry in front of anyone," Harry reminded her, when he escorted her to the train on the following afternoon.

"I won't, Mr. Mauder," Susan promised, grinning. "Will you be in the shop, when we have our Hogsmeade visit?"

"Sure," Harry replied, feeling very excited at the prospect of being able to see Susan again soon.

HP

While the twins together with Harry, Remus and Sirius opened their shop in Hogsmeade on the following day, Jamie Nottingham made his way to Hogwarts. Glad that the corridors were deserted, as the second morning class had just began, he stepped into a small alcove, where he laid both hands against the wall and asked, "Hogwarts, can you hear me?"

To his relief, the gentle voice of an old lady replied, "Of course I can hear you my boy. How can I help you?"

"I was informed that as the heir of your four founders I am your owner," Jamie said, slightly hesitant. "Is that correct?"

"Yes, that's true," Hogwarts confirmed, "and I'm glad that you've finally found out about it. Do you know where the founders' quarters are?" When Harry denied, she explained that he had to walk by the hospital wing and had to continue through the – unused – corridor until he'd come to a painting of the four founders. "If you put your hand against the portrait, so that they can confirm who you are, they'll allow you inside. The Parlour within the quarters is the only place where you can freely speak to me without having to place your hands against my wall."

"Thank you very much," Jamie replied and made his way towards the founders' quarters, where he ended up in a discussion with the four founders about what had happened to him and what he was planning.

"I understand that you're frustrated because of your so-called friends' behaviour and the meddling of the headmaster," Helga Hufflepuff told him, "but please don't forget to act in favour of Hogwarts considering that you're our heir and her owner."

"I promise that I'm going to do what will be in Hogwarts' best interest," Jamie replied in a firm voice, before he enquired, "I'd like to dismiss the Board of Governors once and for all and instead establish a new School Board, which I'd like to equip with people of my trust. Will this be all right for you?"

"Yes, you have our permission," Godric replied, giving him a reassuring nod.

"That will be agreeable," Salazar confirmed.

"Thank you Professors," Jamie said, smiling, before he made himself comfortable at the desk which he has seen in one of the rooms and wrote his first declaration as the owner of Hogwarts.

 _'With efficiency as of today, the Board of Governors for Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry has been abolished. It will be replaced by the newly founded School Board with the members of Amelia Bones, Remus Lupin, Filius Flitwick, Severus Snape and Jamie Nottingham, who will as the owner of Hogwarts act as the head of the School Board.  
3 January, 1996  
Jamie Nottingham  
Owner of Hogwarts School for Witchraft and Wizardry'_

He remained pensive for a moment, before copying the parchment seven times. Heading to the owlery, he posted the parchment to each of the new members as well as to the headmaster, the Minister of Magic as well as to the Daily Prophet. To the new members, he added an invitation to the first meeting of the new School Board for 31 January at 10 a.m. in a private chamber in the Three Broomsticks.

Glancing at his wrist watch, he realised that it was time for him to return to Hogsmeade, as the hour that he had travelled back into the past with his time turner was almost over. _'This will cause uproar, having a half-goblin, a werewolf and a former Death Eater on the School Board,'_ he thought, inwardly grinning, as he walked back home over the deserted grounds. He made a small detour by the Three Broomsticks to reserve the room for the School Board meeting before changing his features back to those of Harold Mauder, as he reached the Marauders' Magical Mysteries.

HP

"I need a house-elf," Harry spoke up, when he was having dinner together with his extended family the same evening.

"Why?" Sirius was the first to ask.

Harry let out a long sigh. "As I told you, I sent out the letters announcing the matter with the school board, but if anyone wants to send a reply to Jamie Nottingham, no owl will be able to find me. If I had a house-elf, I could at least tell the members of the new board to call him and have their letter delivered if they need to contact me."

"There must be at least a dozen house-elves at Potter Manor," Sirius spoke up, pensively. "Gina is the head house-elf. What if you call her and ask if one of the elves would be willing to come here to live with us?"

"Won't people like Dumbledore know the Potters' house-elves?" Amelia cautioned.

"Let's ask Gina anyway. Maybe some of the elves had children or know a house-elf who wants to be adopted," Sirius insisted.

"Gina!" Harry called the head house-elf, secretly surprised when indeed an elf popped up in front of himself.

"Master Harry, Master Sirius and friends, Gina is very happy to be called to Master Harry. What can Gina do for you?" the elf asked in clear excitement.

"Gina, I need an elf to live here with me, but it can't be anyone who is generally known as a Potter elf," Harry admitted. "Do you have any idea?"

Gina's expression stretched to a smile.

"Yes Master Harry, Susi and Tobi, two of the elves responsible for Potter Manor, married. I'm sorry," she suddenly interrupted herself. "But no Master was there to allow them, so I told them it was all right to marry, because they wanted a baby. Please do not punish them, Master Harry. Punish Gina instead."

"No one will be punished, Gina," Harry replied, kindly. "At the next opportunity, I will visit you at Potter Manor to get to know all of you. Please continue."

"Their baby Teddy still needs to be bond to Master Harry and no one knows that he is a Potter elf yet," Gina informed him.

"Gina, could you please ask Susi, Tobi and Teddy if they're willing to live with us here?" Harry enquired.

Gina smiled. "Sure Master Harry," she confirmed and popped away.

"Don't worry Harry, the elves will be thrilled," Sirius reassured him.

An instant later, he returned together with two sobbing elves, who were bowing deeply, and a much younger elf.

"Susi, Tobi, please don't bow," Harry said, gently. "Please also stop crying."

"We're bad house-elves, Master Harry," the elf whom Harry recognised as the male elf, spoke up.

"No, you're not bad," Harry reassured them. "You're very good house-elves, and I wish to bond with Teddy and for the three of you to live here with me and my friends."

Does Master Harry know how to do the bonding with Teddy, or should I do it for you?" Gina enquired, giving Harry a questioning look.

"Yes please, Gina," Harry replied, feeling very much reassured by the elf's behaviour.

A few minutes later, Teddy was bonded to Harry, and the three elves were happily busying themselves building their own quarters behind the kitchen on the second floor.

"Tomorrow morning, I need to tell them about my two names," Harry said, thoughtfully. "Do I need to cast any spell at them that will prevent them from telling anyone my real name or that I have two names or such?"

"No," Amelia replied, smiling. "Since they're bonded to you, they'll automatically know your secrets and they'll definitely keep them. There's nothing that you have to worry about."

HP

"By the way, Harry, is there a reason for your selection of the members of the School Board?" Remus suddenly spoke up.

"A werewolf, a half-goblin, a former Death Eater and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement you mean?" Harry replied, grinning.

"A former Death Eater?" the twins enquired, giving him a curious look.

"Snape?" Sirius blurted out, incredulously.

"The bat of the dungeons?" Fred added.

His brother continued, "Who was said to hate Harry Potter with a passion?"

Harry smiled. "I have a very private connection with Snape, and he knows who I am. The only member who doesn't know my true identity is Flitwick, but I trust him."

"Harry, if you don't mind me asking," Amelia spoke up again, "what exactly is the purpose? I mean what do you intend to do by abolishing the Board of Governors and setting up the new School Board? Is this part of a plan on getting revenge against Dumbledore?"

"No," Harry replied in a firm voice. "Before, everything seems to have been dictated by Malfoy, and I want to change that. The people I've chosen are less biased and probably much more open for changes. At least that's what I believe, and I really want the Board to act in Hogwarts' best interests."

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	6. Chapter 6

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

"We can't have Dumbledore or Lucius Malfoy decide everything. Our members here are less biased, and I can be sure that we will decide what's going to be best for Hogwarts," Jamie told the members of the School Board at their first meeting at the end of January.

"First of all, I wish to replace Professor Binns as History of Magic Professor," he continued.

"Yes, that's long overdue," Flitwick was the first to agree. "I don't know why Albus still keeps that ghost who is interested in nothing but the wars against the goblins."

"Exactly," Snape spoke up, smirking.

"If none of the seventh years are willing to take the position, we could even accept someone who has only taken their OWLs and would be willing to take only the History of Magic NEWT before the beginning of the school year," Flitwick suggested. "They'd still have time enough to take other NEWTs apart from teaching History of Magic, as they'd have much less hours to teach than in the main subjects."

Everyone agreed and it was decided to put up a job advertisement into the Daily Prophet as well as an announcement on the board of the four common rooms.

"Professors Snape and Flitwick, will you please speak with the headmaster and make sure that he forwards all applications to one of you?" Jamie enquired. "Or should we put it that all applications should be made to the School Board?"

"Dumbledore will forward them," Flitwick replied, causing Snape to nod his agreement.

"We won't allow him to meddle in this case," he confirmed.

"I also wish to install a Latin class as elective subject," Jamie suggested, and after a short discussion about the matter, everyone agreed and decided to proceed in the same way as with the History of Magic position.

Before adjourning the meeting, the five members agreed to meet once a month, namely on the last day of each month at 7 p.m. at the Three Broomsticks. Jamie also received the advice to head to the owl office at Diagon Alley and inform them where all owl posts addressed to the Hogwarts School Boards were supposed to go.

"That's good to know. Thank you very much," he told the professors and decided to take Teddy with him to the owl office and make all letters go to him.

HP

On Valentine's day, the Hogwarts students had their first Hogsmeade visit of the year, and Harry somehow impatiently waited if Susan was going to show up. The twins, apparently able to understand his excitement, had already convinced him to ask her out to a date, and Harry fully intended to do so. _'The question is who's going to be with her,'_ he thought, as he looked up the main street, which had already become quite crowded with larger and smaller groups of students.

All of a sudden, however, Susan manifested out of the group and approached their shop.

"Hi Susan," Harry addressed her, smiling in a faint attempt to hide his nervousness.

"Hi Harold," Susan replied and returned the smile before asking, "Are you busy today?"

Glancing at the crowd of students that was gathered in the fortunately large shop, Harry smirked. "Well, Sirius, Remus and the twins are all here, so I could go out for a little while I suppose."

Together, they spent a few hours roaming Hogsmeade, and Harry had the impression as if not only he but also Susan enjoyed herself greatly. Before she had to return to Hogwarts, he introduced her to Teddy and told her that she could just call Teddy if she wanted to contact him, for example when she got to know when the next Hogsmeade visit would be.

"I will," Susan agreed and looked as if she wanted to say something else, however, apparently decided against it and instead quickly placed a kiss onto his cheek, before she hurried away.

 _'She's really nice,'_ Harry thought, as he absentmindedly touched the spot where she had kissed him, having the impression as if her kiss had let lose a bunch of butterflies in his belly.

HP

It was at the meeting of the School Board, which took place at the end of March, that Flitwick produced two applications for the open posts at Hogwarts, which he handed to Jamie.

The first was the application of fifth-year Hermione Granger, who wanted to become the new professor for History of Magic, and the second was for the post of the professor for Latin, for which Bill Weasley applied.

"No to both applications," Jamie decided in a firm voice, before he handed the parchments to Amelia.

"I agree," Amelia stated, followed by Remus and Snape.

"Excuse me, but I actually thought that Miss Granger would be good for the position," Flitwick spoke up in apparent confusion.

"Sorry Filius, but I've seen her real face during Harry Potter's trial last summer, and I can't recommend her at all," Remus replied, causing the others to voice their agreement.

"Oh all right, in that case, I fully agree with you all," Flitwick said in understanding. "I shall return these to Professor Dumbledore then."

"There must have been other applications, haven't there?" Amelia enquired. "Please tell him to hand over all applications not only those of his favourites."

"I will," Flitwick agreed in determination, while Snape mumbled something sounding like "Meddling old coot".

HP

However, when the School Board met again at the end of April, the headmaster had once again handed Flitwick two applications. This time, Hermione Granger applied for the position of the Latin professor, while Bill Weasley wanted to become the professor for History of Magic.

"How stupid does he think we are?" Jamie blurted out in anger. "I'm sorry, but I hope that you all agree with me that we have to refuse."

"I believe that we should take the matter a little further this time," Snape spoke up, his expression schooled to an indifferent mask. Seeing that everyone looked at him in clear expectation, he explained, "I know for a fact that at least Adrian Greengrass also applied for the Latin position. We should make a new announcement and this time ask the applicants to apply directly to the Hogwarts School Board."

"That's a good idea," Amelia immediately agreed, and everyone nodded their consent.

"Professor Flitwick," Jamie said, pensively. "If you know goblins who are firm in History of Magic, please encourage them to apply as well. I don't have a problem hiring a goblin for the position."

HP

During the first three weeks of May, Teddy brought Harry many letters. However, not all were applications directed to the School Board. One of the first was from Susan, in which she informed him that the next Hogsmeade visit would be on the fifteenth of May.

Smiling, Harry scribbled a response, in which he asked her out on a date for that day. He handed the letter to Teddy. "Please take this to Susan Bones at Hogwarts," he asked, gently, making Teddy's eyes shine with eagerness.

While he spent a few hours brewing potions together with the twins, practising for their Potions NEWT, he could not help his thoughts drifting off to a former classmate with red hair and brown eyes. _'I wonder if she'd be willing to become my girlfriend?'_ he thought, as he absently stirred the lime green liquid in his cauldron.

He spent much time pondering the matter, before he decided to ask his godfather for advice. The opportunity arose when he was together with Sirius in the storage room charming a couple of objects for the shop.

"Sirius, do you think I could ask Susan to become my girlfriend?" he asked, suddenly feeling extremely stupid at the question.

Sirius chuckled, before he encouraged Harry and advised him to buy friendship rings for the two of them. "I'm using a pair together with Amelia, and so do Remus and Tonks. You can communicate telepathically through the rings, which is enormously convenient."

"Oh that's a great idea," Harry replied, pensively, before a sudden thought crossed his mind. "Will I be able to keep it invisible from others? I don't want people to notice that Harold Mauder is wearing the same ring as Jamie Nottingham."

Sirius grinned. "Of course you can charm it to be invisible to everyone but you and Susan." His expression faltered a little, before he asked, "Does Susan know about Jamie Nottingham?"

Harry let out a deep sigh. "Not yet, but I plan to tell her before asking her to become my girlfriend. Otherwise, it would be unfair."

"That's right, Harry," Sirius replied, laughing. "Good luck!"

HP

On Saturday morning, Harry stood behind one of the show windows, from where he could look out onto the main street but could not be seen from outside and watched the students walk along the street, as he waited for Susan.

Suddenly, he saw Hermione and Ron come over to the entrance of their shop. However, he did not leave his spot. It was his day off, and even if not, he'd not serve these two. To his surprise, he did not even feel sorry for not being friends with them anymore.

Susan arrived just an instant later, and Harry led her to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop, which fortunately was not so frequented by students, so that they could talk quietly.

"Susan, what do you know about the Hogwarts School Board?" he asked, curious on the one hand, not sure how to begin the much needed conversation on the other hand.

"Not much, only that it was founded to replace the former Board of Governors," Susan replied, thoughtfully. "And Auntie told me that its members were werewolves, half-goblins and…" She stopped, giving Harry a questioning look.

"Yes, and Snape, who is a spy between Dumbledore and Voldemort," Harry explained. "I'm also on the Board," he then admitted, "however, not as Harold Mauder but as Jamie Nottingham. I trust that you have heard of him?"

"I heard that name. Isn't he the owner of Hogwarts?" Susan asked, seeming slightly confused.

"Yes," Harry acknowledged. "I just wanted to tell you the truth, before I need to ask you something important." He hesitated for a moment, before he added, "I hope you don't mind my doubling or however you want to call it."

"I don't mind," Susan replied, smiling. "I know that you'd never do anything bad, and Auntie is speaking very highly of you. I'm sure that she's aware of the matter considering that she's on the School Board as well."

"Exactly," Harry confirmed. He squirmed in his seat for a moment, summoning his courage, before he asked, "Susan, would you be willing to become my girlfriend?"

When he hesitantly looked up to face her, she was smiling happily and finally replied, "I'd love to be your girlfriend, Harold."

"Thank you Susan," Harry replied, happily, and carefully slid one of the friendship rings over her ring finger, where it automatically adjusted itself to the correct size.

His own ring went onto the ring finger of his left hand, right next to the one, which he had been wearing since he was a baby.

HP

Knowing that he had two weeks until the next meeting of the School Board, Harry began to do some research about the people who had sent applications for the two job openings at Hogwarts. There were fifteen for the History of Magic position and five for Latin.

He immediately sorted out the applications from Hermione Granger, Bill Weasley, Emmeline Vance and Dedalus Diggle, knowing the last two to be members of Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix, before he changed into Jamie and made his way to Hogwarts in order to check the library for information about the other applicants.

In the end, he decided on Adrian Greengrass, his former classmate Daphne's father, for the Latin position, having found out that the Greengrasses had while distancing themselves from Voldemort never been on the side of the light. The professor for History of Magic was more difficult to decide, first of all because there were more applicants, but Harry finally decided on Ignatius Davis, the father of Tracey Davis, another Slytherin student in Harry's year, as his family seemed to be holding a similar position of neutrality as the Greengrasses.

 _'I hope the other members will agree,'_ Jamie thought, as he readied himself for the meeting, where he presented all information that he had gathered about the respective families. Needless to say that he received an unanimous confirmation for his suggestions to both positions.

HP

It was a couple of hours after the meeting of the School Board that Harry was pulled into a vision.

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	7. Chapter 7

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

Severus bowed deeply. "My Lord," he greeted the most evil wizard Britain's.

"Severus, my spy, what is the news that you have for me?" Voldemort asked, for once in a good mood.

"Jamie Nottingham," Severus began to explain. "I know for a fact that if he managed to become the new Minister of Magic, provided that the no-confidence vote against Fudge will pass the Wizengamot, he would fire all members of Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix, like, for example, the Weasleys, and would be willing to replace them with your followers. He is not, nor will he become a Death Eater, however, he'll cooperate with us."

"That would help us greatly on our way to overcome the ministry," Voldemort continued, seemingly contented. "That means that we have to see to it that he receives enough votes," he added. "When is the next meeting of the Wizengamot going to take place?" he enquired.

"Wednesday next week," Severus informed him.

"Good." The Dark Lord nodded and reached for Severus' arm to call his followers.

During the next few minutes, while Severus spoke with Voldemort about one of his potions experiments, the Death Eaters apparated into the room, bowing in front of the Dark Lord.

"Silence," Voldemort suddenly bellowed and demanded, "Everyone who owns a seat on the Wizengamot step forward."

Twenty-four wizards took a few steps until they came to stand right in front of Voldemort.

"Lucius," the evil wizard addressed his most trusted follower. "I trust that you have heard the name Jamie Nottingham before?"

"Yes sir," Malfoy replied in clear surprise. "He has three votes on the Wizengamot, which he all received from Harry Potter."

"I know that," Voldemort informed him, shortly. "I wish Jamie Nottingham to replace Fudge as the Minister of Magic during the next meeting of the Wizengamot, which is going to take place on Wednesday."

"Yes my Lord," the Death Eaters replied in a chorus.

"That's all," Voldemort said and dismissed everyone.

HP

 _'Minister of Magic?'_ Harry thought in disbelief. _'What the… Being the Minister of Magic would be a full-time job, but how would I be able to handle that and being Harold Mauder at the same time without turning back the time turner for at least sixteen hours each time? I still want to be Harold as well and I need to… because of Susan. Jamie is much too old for her. On the other hand, I want her at my side at all times. Oh, this complicates everything.'_

He almost had the impression as if he could hear a faint chuckle in his mind, however, he dismissed the thought, not wanting anything to distract him from the decision he had to find. After a long while of pondering the matter, he finally came to a solution. _'Oh yes, more revenge. This is going to be fun.'_

HP

As could be expected, the majority of the Wizengamot members did not only vote to kick Fudge out of his position as Minister of Magic but also agreed with Lucius Malfoy's suggestion of electing Jamie Nottingham instead.

If some people hesitated seeing who brought up his name, their concerns were completely destroyed when Amelia spoke a few words in favour of Jamie. Knowing that he had a majority of eighty percent, Jamie felt slightly relieved, even knowing that the whole matter had only be arranged by Snape respectively Voldemort.

After the meeting, Amelia led him to his new office, explaining that Fudge had two hours to vacate the office including the minister's living quarters and that she'd introduce him to the minister's staff in the meantime.

She first introduced him to Percy Weasley, who had become the new undersecretary of the minister when Umbridge had been put into Azkaban. Harry did not allow any dislike to show up in his voice neither his expression, however, he made a mental note to make firing his undersecretary the first task in his position as minister.

 _'The question is whom I could hire instead,'_ Jamie mused, when a faint voice from somewhere in his mind suggested 'Narcissa Malfoy'.

When he spoke about his intention with Amelia, once they were sitting in her office surrounded by silencing charms, she gave him a stern look.

"Jamie, you know that I will support you with all means, just please promise me one thing," she spoke up.

"Almost anything," Jamie replied, giving her a curious look.

"Don't let the Death Eaters take over the ministry just to punish Dumbledore," Amelia continued.

"I won't," Jamie promised. "I'll only allow them to gain power to a certain extent, until we'll be able to vanish them completely. Please trust me and advise me, and please tell me if there's anyone you want me to put in the positions that are currently held by members of the Order of the Phoenix."

"I'll think about it," Amelia promised, apparently trusting that she could rely on her fiancé's godchild.

HP

As intended, Jamie's first act as the Minister of Magic was the dismissal of Percy Weasley, closely followed by all persons, of whom he knew that they were members of the Order of the Phoenix, which Amelia and Tonks had left right after his imprisonment in Azkaban.

Although he refused to even admit it to himself, the hardest of all dismissals was that of Arthur Weasley. He had experienced nothing but kindness by the red haired wizard, and he was certain that Arthur had no clue about Molly's strange deals with Dumbledore concerning himself. Nevertheless, he called the Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office and informed him that he deemed Arabella Figg more competent for the position, since she had much more experience in the muggle world.

To his relief, Arabella Figg as well as Narcissa Malfoy accepted the offered positions, and Jamie realised soon that he had made the right choice with his new undersecretary. After receiving a loyalty oath from Narcissa, Jamie informed her about his new policy, which mainly manifested in the dismissal of people who were sworn to Dumbledore and installing all kinds of Squibs, so-called half-breads and even former Death Eaters.

Narcissa was not only able to suggest several promising new employees for him, but even had an idea that proved to be fruitful for his mission.

"Why don't you install detectors that scan everyone who tries to enter the ministry and refuse access to everyone who is a member of the Order of the Phoenix?" she suggested, causing Jamie to look up with a combination of surprise and eagerness.

"That's a brilliant idea," he agreed and, as soon as he returned home in the evening, asked the twins and Sirius to produce such a detector.

HP

It was on Jamie's fifth day as the Minister of Magic that Dobby installed the detectors to all entrances to the ministry, including the fireplaces. The only exception was the office of the minister himself.

Sure enough, two days later, Albus Dumbledore paid Jamie a visit.

"What can I do for you, Professor?" Jamie enquired, concentrating on firmly occluding his mind against a Legilimency attack from the old wizard.

"I merely came to enquire why the members of the Order of the Phoenix are not allowed into the Ministry of Magic anymore, while Death Eaters and Squibs have free access to as much as the head of department positions," Dumbledore spoke up in a firm voice.

"The members of the Order of the Phoenix are sworn to follow you, while neither former Death Eaters nor Squibs have a master to serve. Their loyalties solely lie with the Ministry of Magic," Jamie responded in a way that he had pondered and also discussed with his family beforehand.

"Have I ever shown myself disloyal towards the ministry?" Dumbledore enquired in his grandfatherly voice.

Jamie let out a snort, before he replied, "It was you who three times brought guiltless people into Azkaban, although you'd have been able to prevent them from being accused innocently." Seeing that the headmaster gave him a questioning look, he explained, "First Hagrid, then Sirius Black and finally Harry Potter. All three of them were innocent, absolutely loyal to you and definitely not Death Eaters. Instead, one of them was an Auror and the other the prophesized child who was supposed to get rid of Voldemort, be it that he's back like you claim or not like Fudge believed. You have done the ministry great harm in at least these two cases."

"I see," Dumbledore said in sad voice, apparently understanding that the new Minister of Magic was not willing to take his side. "In a different matter," he continued, "I suppose that as the Minister of Magic you will appoint someone else for the School Board. Is that correct?"

"Yes sir," Jamie confirmed.

"May I ask you to come to an agreement with me concerning the position?" Dumbledore queried, thoughtfully stroking his beard.

"I have already decided to offer the position to Hagrid, provided that he proves his loyalty to Hogwarts and not solely to the current headmaster," Jamie replied in a firm voice. "Hagrid will have a trial during the next couple of days, and I expect him to be free of all charges on time for the next meeting of the School Board."

 _'He's totally pissed off,'_ Jamie thought in amusement, once the old wizard had stepped back into the fireplace. _'Good that I went to Hagrid and made him swear that oath last night.'_

HP

It was almost too soon for Harry's liking that the summer holidays at Hogwarts began. Since he had to be present at the Ministry of Magic during the whole day, he barely had time to be in his Harold Marauder form if he did not want to go back in time a whole day on a regular basis. On the other hand, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with Susan. He pondered the matter over and over, before he finally asked Amelia for her advice.

"Why don't you do some research about the Wizengamot and its decisions during the last, for example, one hundred years?" the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement finally suggested. "I believe that Dumbledore has used his majority on the Wizengamot due to the votes of you and Sirius, which he held until recently, as well as with the help of the members of his Order, to put through several regulations that would not have passed otherwise. Also, Minister Fudge was probably forced by Lucius Malfoy to bring regulations through which are unreasonable."

"Yes, that's a good idea, but…" Jamie slowly trailed off, giving Amelia a curious look.

"You could hire Susan to do some research for you," she simply suggested, causing his eyes to widen as understanding set in.

He remained thoughtful for a moment, before he replied, "Amelia, that's a brilliant idea, and Susan has already agreed to work as my assistant during the summer holidays. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome, Jamie. I'm glad that you and Susan are together. I couldn't wish for a better boyfriend for my niece," Amelia admitted. "Oh and by the way, Sirius and I have decided to get married on the first of August," she added, "together with Remus and Tonks in a double wedding."

HP

Although Jamie was not an official member of the School Board anymore, he made it a habit to attend the sessions and give suggestions to the members. After thorough research, it was his idea to hire Thorfinn Rowle, a wizard who was not overall known as Death Eater and said to be relatively harmless in comparison to, for example, Lucius Malfoy, for the vacant Defence Against the Dark Arts position.

Once again, it was a few hours after the School Board meeting on the 31st of July that he was pulled into a vision.

HP

"Severus, my faithful servant," Voldemort greeted the Potions Master. "What news do you have for me?"

"Nottingham has seen to it that one of our midst became the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor," Snape informed him, hoping that the Dark Lord would be happy at the news.

"Who is it?" Voldemort enquired in apparent interest."

"Thorfinn Rowle, my Lord," Snape replied in a firm voice. "Fortunately, everyone on the Board is loyal to Nottingham and did not question anything."

"Well done concerning Hogwarts as well as the Ministry of Magic," Voldemort said, seemingly contented. "You've earned my respect in this matter. Now, to show you my gratefulness, I shall assign you an extremely important task."

"I shall be happy to fulfil any task that you entrust me with, my Lord," Snape replied, inwardly groaning at whatever the evil wizard might have thought of.

"Kill Dumbledore," Voldemort instructed him, red eyes staring at him in demand.

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	8. Chapter 8

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

Inwardly sighing, Severus entered the headmaster's office.

"Hello Severus, my boy," Albus greeted him, offering him a lemon drop.

"The Dark Lord has given me order to kill you," Severus informed the old wizard, not willing to delay his message by small talk.

"Oh has he?" Albus replied in apparent amusement.

"I don't know what's so funny," Severus enquired in irritation.

"Ah my boy, death is nothing but the next great adventure," Albus explained. "Moreover, during the last couple of weeks, I have destroyed two Horcruxes…" He interrupted himself to show his most trusted colleague his darkening wand arm, "… and I've still left to destroy some more. I'd like you to ask Voldemort to wait until about the end of the school year or at least Christmas. By then, I'll have probably managed to destroy them all, and if this hunt for Horcurxes continues in this way, I'll be only barely alive by then, so that no one will blame you for what you're going to do. I'll see to it that I inform Minerva about the matter on time."

 _'Meddling old coot,'_ Severus thought. ' _I'm going to inform the School Board about it.'_ Finally, he admitted, "The Dark Lord isn't exactly patient. However, I'll try to get as much time as possible."

HP

At the same time, Jamie spoke with Buckbean and set up the Harry Potter foundation, before he – according to his discussion with the School Board on the previous evening – sent a letter to the Daily Prophet asking for the publication of his announcement.

 _'From the following school year onwards, the Harry Potter foundation will give out two scholarships for Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry for students from families in need. The foundation will cover all fees for the two students including the costs for their school supplies and everything they will need to study at Hogwarts until their graduation. All applications which reach the Hogwarts School Board by August 15 will be considered, and the winners will be contacted on August 20 and published here on August 21. Good luck and please inform your friends, especially muggleborns who might not be readers of the Daily Prophet, about this.'_

"I know who's going to apply in any case," Susan told him, smirking, when he returned to the ministry, where she was working in one of the small ante chambers to his own office.

"And who might that be?" Jamie asked in amusement.

"Ronald and Ginny Weasley," Susan replied, matter-of-factly. "The Weaselys won't be able to send them to Hogwarts."

"I know," Jamie replied, grimly. "Their mother already contacted the twins and begged them to pay for them or at least allow them to work in our shop, but the twins refused."

"Are you still working at the shop at all?" Susan enquired, seemingly amused.

"Not really," Jamie admitted. "I only occasionally help with some preparations and assist during the weekends. I'll surely be there again on Saturdays once school resumes, however," he promised, smirking.

"Oh well, I hope so," Susan replied, sighing. "I'm going to miss you," she added in a small voice.

"Same here," Jamie replied, forcing himself to not give her a kiss, considering that others could enter the office at any time. "At least we can communicate telepathically though."

HP

Since the letters addressed to the School Board were still sent to Teddy, Harry had much time to check the background of the twenty families who applied for the scholarships. He added a page of background content to each of the application as well as his own opinion, before he handed the whole batch of parchments to Remus, who would then forward the pile to Amelia and further to the three members who were staff members at Hogwarts. Since the matter did not directly affect Hogwarts in any way, he decided to not participate in the meeting that selected the candidates.

Instead, he attended a meeting between representatives of the goblins, the elves, the Ministry of Magic and one of the employees from the British government, whom he knew to be a Squib.

Ever since Jamie had taken over as Minister of Magic, he had tried to work on setting up relationships between the muggle government and the ministry, and the muggle government had since then built up a small, secret department for magical relations.

 _'We also need a Department for Muggle Relations,'_ Jamie thought, wondering if Susan would be interested to lead such a department.

 _'I'd love it,'_ Susan replied on his telepathic question. _'Let me think about it for a moment.'_

It was late in the afternoon that Susan thought to him, 'Harry, can you ask Auntie for her opinion please? I mean I want the position, that's out of the question, but I'd like to know if she'd mind if I leave Hogwarts. Maybe I could ask Sirius and Remus to teach me after work, so that I can still take the NEWTs in a few subjects. I need to decide right away though. The Hogwarts Express should arrive at Hogsmeade in about two hours, and if I leave Hogwarts, I should do it before even arriving there for my sixth year.'

'We could study together, as I also want to take the NEWTs in a few subjects. I only have managed to take the Potions NEWT so far. Oh well, I'll speak with your aunt right away,' Jamie promised and headed to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to consult Amelia.

"What I want to do," he explained to his godfather's wife, "is to set up a Department for Exterior Relations. Within the department, I want to have a Squib responsible for the relationships to the muggle world, a goblin for the connections to the goblins and an elf for the relationships to the elves. Maybe, we also need someone for werewolves or other minorities, but we can think about that at a later time. Anyway, I'd like Susan to become head of the department," he added and told her about her niece's reaction.

To his immense relief, Amelia smiled. "Jamie, as much as I'd have liked Susan to properly finish Hogwarts, I think that this is a wonderful opportunity for her, and I fully agree. Nevertheless, I really hope that both of you will find the time to study and take at least the most important NEWTs."

"We will," Jamie promised, smiling, before he telepathically contacted Susan and instructed her to head from the station in Hogsmeade right to his home, while her aunt would contact the headmaster to pull her out of Hogwarts.

HP

Amelia could not help smiling. _'Susan is really lucky that she ended up with Harry,'_ she thought. _'Becoming head of a department right out of school, just after finishing her OWLs is something that most people can only dream about. That department is long overdue anyway, and I'm sure it'll be really interesting for her. I look forward to working together with her,'_ she thought, before she leaned into the fireplace to contact Albus Dumbledore.

To her surprise, Dumbledore was absent, and Minerva McGonagall answered her call.

"Lady Black," she greeted her in apparent surprise.

"Hello Minerva," Amelia said in a friendly voice, as she had always liked the Gryffindor head and this had not changed since the older witch seemed to have done nothing wrong concerning Harry Potter and Sirius Black.

"Amelia," the Scottish witch replied with a small smile playing on her lips.

"I'm sorry to contact you so late, but Susan has just been offered a position at the Ministry of Magic, and I wish to take Susan out of Hogwarts as of today," Amelia informed the deputy headmistress, who nodded in understanding, seemingly shocked at the same time.

"What position is it?" she then enquired, more in a colloquial voice.

"Head of the newly founded Department for Exterior Relations," Amelia explained, her voice laced with pride.

"That sounds wonderful, Amelia. Please give Susan my regards and tell her that I wish her good luck," Minerva replied.

"Thank you Minerva. Good bye," Amelia said and pulled out of the fireplace.

HP

Jamie was outright happy. He immediately organised the rooms for the new department, which consisted of one larger office with three desks and space for three more as well as an office for the head of the department, confirming contentedly that it was as near to his own office as Amelia's department.

 _'It's going to be great having Susan here again,'_ he thought, happily. _'Now I only need to find a job for Remus and Sirius somewhere close-by. The twins will manage to do their shop just by themselves.'_ He remained thoughtful for a moment, before he headed home to speak with his girlfriend.

HP

First thing the following morning, Jamie introduced Susan to her new office, before he contacted Buckbean and asked if he could find a suitable goblin to fill the position for goblin relations.

"I'll think about it and ask around," Buckbean promised, seemingly pleased with Jamie's invention of the new department.

"Thank you, Buckbean," Jamie replied, smiling.

His house-elves had suggested for him to call Bandhu, who was one of the elder elves and would surely be able and willing to find a candidate for the position for elves relations for him.

To Jamie's surprise, Bandhu indeed followed his call, and the elder elf told him a lot about the connections between the elves and the human magical world. "One of the tasks of that position must be the abolition of the Statute of Supremacy, which the human magical world placed on the elves," he demanded.

"We'll work out something," Jamie promised in a firm voice, feeling somehow relieved when Bandhu agreed to take the position himself, at least for the time being.

Knowing that Susan needed to get used to her job, he introduced her to Arabella Figg, who was still head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office and instructed the two ladies to work together on finding an appropriate Squib for the position for the relationship to the muggle authorities.

 _'I really have to keep out of this,'_ he thought, knowing that Susan was perfectly capable of doing her job without his interference.

During the following months, he merely took the position of an observer, feeling absolutely contented with the overall progress.

HP

It was a week before Christmas that Severus Snape entered the headmaster's office, inwardly groaning at the job that he had to fulfil on this evening.

"Severus," Albus greeted him and even had the gall to offer a lemon drop – in spite of knowing exactly what Severus' visit meant on that specific night. "Before you finish me off, I need to remind you of something." Seeing Severus look at him in expectation, he continued, and Severus noticed that the old wizard was indeed already very weak, "You must find Harry Potter. I have destroyed all Horcruxes except for the one in his head. He has to be killed by Voldemort to finish off that last one and then he must kill Voldemort. Otherwise, the Dark Side will win."

"I know where Harry Potter is," Severus revealed, inwardly smirking.

"What?" the old wizard blurted out in clear shock.

"Have you ever heard of 'Marauders' Magical Mysteries'?"

"The shop in Hogsmeade?" Albus enquired in clear disbelief.

"Yes, that very one. Who are the owners?" Severus enquired in amusement.

"Fred, George and Harold Mauder," Albus replied, his eyes widening as realisation set in.

"Very well, and who's the Minister of Magic?" Severus asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Jamie Nottingham," Albus stated, questioningly.

"It's him as well. He's using a time turner," Severus informed the old wizard.

"But why did he allow the Death Eaters to take over the Ministry?" Dumbledore wanted to know.

"He only partly did," Severus made clear. "He fired the Weasleys for their betrayal against him as well as everyone else who was involved in his unfair imprisonment at that time, and it was he who saw to it that you could not hire Granger as professor for the same reason."

"Severus," Dumbledore spoke up, weakly, "my boy, how do you know all of this?"

Severus smirked. "When you placed him with the Dursleys, I gave him Lily's friendship ring, which is invisible to everyone but him and me and can't be taken off by anyone than myself. Through the ring, I was able to tell him about magic, about Hogwarts, help him when he was injured by the hands of his relatives, and last not least, I'm able to witness his thoughts."

"Does Harry know about this?" Dumbledore enquired. His voice a mere whisper.

"I don't think so," Severus lied. "He knew that someone helped him through his time at his relatives', but I stopped when he came to Hogwarts. He'd be able to witness my thoughts, however, I'm too good a Legilimens for him to be able to receive any insight into my mind."

"So you have known what he was doing the whole time and have not told me?" Albus queried in clear disbelief.

"Yes Albus, and… I'm sorry," Severus replied. He pointed his wand at his former mentor uttering the incantation and pocketed the Elder Wand – just an instant before he heard the Death Eaters coming up towards the office.

 _tbc..._

 _Thank you very much for the kind feedback to the previous chapter!_


	9. Chapter 9

**True Friendship Marauder Style**  
 **by Healer Pomfrey**

 _All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

 **COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC. Slightly dark!Harry. Not one of my nice, fluffy stories!  
** **It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, go and find something else to read or write your own story to your liking!**

* * *

The ministry was in uproar following the murder of Albus Dumbledore. However, both Jamie and Amelia dismissed all claims that Snape was a murderer explaining that Dumbledore had already been almost dead and had asked Snape to relieve him from the pain that he felt himself exposed to.

To Jamie's and Amelia's relief, Professor McGonagall was even in the possession of a hand-written note from Albus Dumbledore, which exactly confirmed their explanation.

HP

On Voldemort's demand, Snape asked the School Board to make him the headmaster for the time being.

"As soon as the Dark Lord will be gone, I'll step back. I'd rather brew potions anyway," he admitted.

"I have a suggestion," Jamie spoke up. "We can make Sirius the Potions professor, and the two of you can just switch positions whenever Voldemort will be gone."

"Very well," Snape agreed, smirking, before he enquired, "Nottingham, you're aware of the fact that you have to kill him, don't you? At least according to Dumbledore, who believed in the prophecy uttered by Trelawney."

Jamie nodded, grimly, causing a huge discussion to break out about the matter, during which he had to reveal his real name to Flitwick and Hagrid – after receiving a wizard's oath to keep the matter to themselves from both half-wizards.

"The problem is that there's still a Horcrux in your head, behind your scar," Snape informed Jamie, who shook his head in denial.

"Have you not noticed that my scar is gone?" he asked, smirking.

"Well yes, but we thought it was some kind of concealment charm," Amelia supplied under everyone's nodded consent.

"Yes it is," Jamie said, chuckling. "Otherwise, I wouldn't still have the connection to Voldemort. The Horcrux is gone though. When I first transformed into a phoenix, back at Azkaban, some kind of black cloud came out of my head, and I saw that it was sucked in by one of the Dementors. I think that must have been the Horcrux."

"May I be allowed to check?" Snape enquired, pointing his wand at Jamie's forehead.

"Of course sir," Jamie replied, feeling very uncomfortable seeing himself at wand point.

A moment later, Snape let his wand sink. "There's no Horcrux anymore. I'm sure because my diagnostic spell came back differently from what it did during your first Hogwarts year."

"Thank Merlin," Amelia said what everyone else including Jamie thought.

"I have an idea," Snape finally said, sounding pensive. "We could tell the Dark Lord that we're considering him to become the headmaster instead of myself and invite him to meet us here."

"And then?" Amelia enquired, seemingly horrified.

"Then we can get rid of him," Harry added, smirking. "Do you have an idea as to how though, Professor?"

Snape nodded and taught the younger wizard a spell. "We'll cast it together, and he won't have a chance. Together, we're stronger than him, especially since you have a new wand which is not connected to him and I'm in the possession of the Elder Wand. If the prophecy demands that you kill him, he'll still succumb to your spell, as he'll be weakened enough by mine. Casting together will be foolproof."

"I just hope he will agree and come here at all," Remus threw in, thoughtfully.

"He will," Snape said, reassuringly. "He'll be thrilled to be given the opportunity to become headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Can we please do this before Christmas?" Jamie suddenly asked.

"We can, but why?" Flitwick enquired.

"If we manage to get rid of him, I'd like to make my girlfriend my fiancée on Christmas Day," Jamie replied, unable to keep himself from blushing. "But I can't ask her such a thing knowing that I still have to get rid of Voldemort first."

"I'll try to convince the Dark Lord to attend a meeting of the School Board in the morning of Christmas Eve," Snape suggested, and everyone agreed.

"Should we this one time meet in one of the rooms on the third floor of Marauders' Magical Mysteries?" Remus suggested.

"Yes, I believe that's better," Amelia immediately agreed, causing everyone else to nod their consent.

HP

During the two days until Christmas Eve, Jamie could barely concentrate on his work or anything else. Voldemort had accepted Snape's invitation to the School Board, and Jamie kept worrying if everything would go well.

On the day before Christmas Eve, he headed to Gringotts and spent an hour in his parents' vault, searching for a family heirloom that he could give to Susan when he proposed to her. In the end, he returned home with a pair of engagement rings. Both were golden, and the female ring held an orange stone that had to match Susan's hair well. The male ring was just plain gold, but Jamie liked it nonetheless. _'I hope she'll like it,'_ he thought, as he hid the small box in a drawer in his room.

HP

Unbeknownst to the members of the School Board except for Harry, the Weasley twins had prepared the meeting room on the third floor according to the event that was going to take place in the morning of Christmas Eve.

Shortly after Snape led Voldemort into the room, where Remus, Amelia, Hagrid, Flitwick and Jamie were already assembled, Teddy served tea and refreshments. Only Jamie was aware of the fact that one of the cups, the one with the owl pattern, was laced with a colourless and tasteless weakening potion, and Jamie was just about to use wish magic to exchange the cup with the one in front of Voldemort, when he realised that Teddy had already placed the correct cup in front of the evil wizard.

"Try the tea," Voldemort instructed Snape, who readily took a sip from his cup, before Voldemort followed his example.

"We have called you here to offer you the position of the headmaster of Hogwarts," Jamie addressed his nemesis without calling him by any name. "We thought that…" He interrupted himself, when a huge ruckus began just behind him at the other end of the room, where small fireworks erupted seemingly out of nothing, spitting out small Christmas trees.

'Now!' Snape thought to Jamie, who was already prepared to use the confusion due to the twins' joke, and both wizards unobtrusively pointed their wands at the evil wizard silently casting their spell. Before Voldemort even noticed what they were doing, the double spell squarely hit him in the chest and he sank to the floor.

"He's gone," Snape confirmed with a quickly cast diagnostic spell. "Congratulations Mr. Nottingham. You did it."

"Really?" Jamie repeated in happiness and at the same time surprise that it had been so easy. "Thank you so much for your help, Professor." He rose from his chair and headed to the door, shouting, "Sirius, we need you here."

Five minutes later, it was decided that Sirius was going to be the new headmaster of Hogwarts, and the meeting was adjourned, just when the Aurors arrived, whom Amelia had called through a charmed function of her wrist watch.

HP

"I can't believe that I'm going to be the headmaster," Sirius spoke up, when the extended family including Amelia, Remus and Tonks, Fred and George and Susan and Harry were sitting together for Christmas Eve dinner.

On this evening, they even had a special guest: Severus Snape.

"Don't make us regret our decision, or we're going to blame the owner of Hogwarts," Snape replied, smirking.

"Oh well, we'll see," Sirius replied, his expression laced with a mischievous grin. "Minnie is going to have a fit in any case. Do you think she'll be willing to remain the deputy headmistress?"

"If you behave," Tonks spoke up, chuckling.

"Remus," Susan spoke up, quietly. "I'd like to ask you to think about working in my department at the ministry for the connections to the werewolves. I hope that we'll be able to do something to help werewolves, one point being the encouragement of Potions Masters to intensify their search for a cure for lycanthropy. However, we'd need to have connections to werewolves who'd be willing to try any new inventions, for example."

"I'd love to accept the position," Remus replied without even having to consider the matter.

"Susan," Jamie suddenly addressed his girlfriend. "Now that Voldemort is gone, would you be willing to marry me, next year when we both turn seventeen?"

"Yes," Susan replied, smiling, as Harry gently slid the betrothal ring over her ring finger. "Thank you Harry," she added and helped him with his own ring before pulling him into a passionate kiss.

"Disgusting," Snape mumbled, however, Harry could see that the corners of his lips were twitching as if he was trying to hide a smile.

HP

Just a week later, on New Year's Eve, the yearly New Year Ball took place in the huge ball room within the Ministry of Magic. Jamie had invited all employees with their families as well as the members of the Wizengamot and the School Board.

He opened the ball and greeted everyone, before he introduced Susan as his fiancée and wished everyone a nice evening.

However, before dinner popped up on the tables, Amelia stood and addressed the guests.

"The minister is unaware of this, but I decided to interfere a little with tonight's program," she began, before she explained about the recent events around Voldemort's demise, although almost everyone already knew about the matter from the reports in the Daily Prophet. As soon as the overwhelming applause had died down, she spoke again.

"Tonight, I wish to award our Minister of Magic, Jamie Nottingham, the Order of Merlin first class for the demise of Voldemort."

Exchanging a surprised look with Susan, Harry slowly rose from his chair and walked up to where Amelia was waiting for him.

"Thank you very much," he said, as he accepted the award from his colleague, the wife of his godfather and at the same time his good friend and advisor. Turning towards the guests, he slowly changed his features back to his original Harry Potter features.

"Now that Voldemort is gone, I'm going to reveal something to you. My real name is not Jamie Nottingham but Harry Potter. I hope that you will show me the same trust which you have granted me as Jamie Nottingham." Huge applause as well as a few shouts sounding like "Why?" followed his explanation.

"I have decided to reveal my real form and to continue my life as Harry Potter not only because Voldemort and Albus Dumbledore are gone now, but also because my betrothed, Susan Bones, is going to marry me next summer, and I wish her to become the new Lady Potter," Harry explained, once again receiving huge applause for his announcement.

"There's just one more thing which I'd like to do before we can enjoy our dinner," he continued in determination. "The demise of Voldemort would not have been possible without the help of someone of our midst, and I wish to award him the Order of Merlin first class as well: To Severus Snape, who has shown me true friendship marauder style over many years," he said, smiling, as huge applause followed his announcement.

 **The End**

 _A huge thanks to the kind readers who commented throughout this story!_


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